Royal Bank of Canada Lowers WESCO International (NYSE:WCC) Price Target to $172.00

WESCO International (NYSE:WCC) had its price objective reduced by Royal Bank of Canada from $176.00 to $172.00 in a report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. Royal Bank of Canada currently has a sector perform rating on the technology company’s stock.

WCC has been the subject of several other research reports. Oppenheimer upped their price target on WESCO International from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Friday. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of WESCO International from $203.00 to $170.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. StockNews.com cut shares of WESCO International from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of WESCO International from $180.00 to $175.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their target price on WESCO International from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $187.00.

WESCO International Stock Up 3.1 %

WESCO International stock opened at $172.92 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 2.07. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $161.27 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $160.10. WESCO International has a 1-year low of $122.30 and a 1-year high of $195.43. The company has a current ratio of 2.21, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04.

WESCO International (NYSE:WCC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The technology company reported $2.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.43 by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $5.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.30 billion. WESCO International had a net margin of 3.08% and a return on equity of 15.10%. WESCO International’s revenue was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.75 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that WESCO International will post 14.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WESCO International Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a $0.4125 dividend. This represents a $1.65 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.95%. This is a boost from WESCO International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. WESCO International’s payout ratio is presently 13.74%.

Insider Transactions at WESCO International

In related news, EVP James Cameron sold 5,352 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.39, for a total value of $836,999.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 33,595 shares in the company, valued at $5,253,922.05. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other WESCO International news, EVP Nelson John Squires III sold 3,490 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.00, for a total transaction of $663,100.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 54,385 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,333,150. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP James Cameron sold 5,352 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.39, for a total value of $836,999.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 33,595 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,253,922.05. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of WESCO International

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WCC. Quent Capital LLC boosted its stake in WESCO International by 9.9% in the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 3,703 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $634,000 after purchasing an additional 333 shares during the period. Hosking Partners LLP boosted its position in shares of WESCO International by 68.6% in the first quarter. Hosking Partners LLP now owns 63,577 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $10,889,000 after acquiring an additional 25,864 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in WESCO International by 163.5% during the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 24,236 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $4,151,000 after acquiring an additional 15,037 shares in the last quarter. Peregrine Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in WESCO International by 14.6% during the 1st quarter. Peregrine Capital Management LLC now owns 10,218 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,750,000 after acquiring an additional 1,300 shares during the period. Finally, Hennessy Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in WESCO International by 43.9% in the 1st quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 26,900 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $4,607,000 after purchasing an additional 8,200 shares in the last quarter. 93.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

WESCO International Company Profile

WESCO International, Inc provides business-to-business distribution, logistics services, and supply chain solutions in the United States, Canada, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Electrical & Electronic Solutions (EES), Communications & Security Solutions (CSS), and Utility and Broadband Solutions (UBS).